The invention concerns a test device, in particular for blood sugar tests, comprising a lancing element which is provided with a lancing component for producing a skin puncture, and a protecting element shielding the lancing element at least in the area of the lancing component. The invention additionally concerns a production process for such a test device.
Needles or lancets for obtaining body fluids for blood sugar tests must be sterile before they are inserted into the skin. For this purpose the needle tips are usually packaged germ-tight and, for example, sterilized by irradiation. The packaging keeps the tips sterile until they are removed. For manual use it is usual to twist off or pull off a plastic part surrounding the tip. It is known from International Publication No. WO 01/66010, Fritz et al., published Sep. 13, 2001 (see also U.S. Patent Application Publication No. 2003/0153939, Fritz et al., published Aug. 14, 2003) in connection with automated lancing devices that an elastomer part embedding the tip can be pierced directly during the lancing process.